Overview
- Investigators say organized crime brings in young men from abroad on tourist visas to carry out violent threats and extortion.
- Many of the hired offenders speak little German and leave the country quickly after completing assigned crimes.
- Police recorded more gunfire in 2025, including a nighttime hand grenade thrown into a venue in December as a warning.
- Authorities have responded with raids, arrests, heightened street presence, and cooperation across regional, federal, and international lines.
- Police leaders argue that possession of an illegal firearm strongly indicates organized crime ties and should permit immediate applications for phone taps and physical surveillance under an expanded Section 100a.